ed of the Fruits of your former Bounty, branded by Proclamation as guilty of high Crimes against your Perfon and Government, and lastly, profecuted to fuch Extremes for my Religion; I have chofen to live moft of the Time a clofer Prisoner, than, I dare fay, your Clemency would have me. And to undergo all with Submiffion and Silence, rather than feek Advantages from my Enemies, by expofing to Cenfure any thing (how irregular foever) wherein your Majesty's Name hath been ufed: and fhould have continued to do fo ftill, expecting (with an intire Refignation to your Will and Pleafure) your Majefty's own Time for Grace and Favour, did not the approaching Seffion of Parliament impofe upon me this Addrefs by way of Duty to your Sérvice; fince it appears to me impoffible, that the Privilege of Peers in Parliament can fuffer one of their own Members to lie under an Imputation of Crimes, without either being pardoned, punished, or vindicated.

This it is, which makes me prefume at this time, to caft myself at your Majefty's Feet, and most humbly to beg your Pardon for my rafh and indifcreet Behaviour, in being more earnest than became me, when I had laft the Honour to wait upon you in your Clofet; fuch as I must confefs, might very justly move your Indignation against me, fince no Provocation, nor Excefs of Zeal whatever, can juftify fuch a Freedom from a Subject to a Sovereign. And if my Sufferings and Submiffions have not yet been fufficient to expiate that Indiscretion, I am ready to undergo whatever your Majesty shall further think fit to inflict upon me, by way of Difpleafure; fo that it draw along with it no Imputation of Crime: for

as

as to that, I must ever crave Leave to defend my Innocence againft all the World; fince this Truth I must justify to my latest Breath, that neither then, nor at any other Time, hath my Heart ever been fufceptible of a Thought either to differve or difplease you.

But as God himself, whofe Vicegerent you are, doth in the judging of Sin, admit of Extenuation from high Temptations of Frailty, fo I hope your Majefty will be pleased to confider how far the Nature of fo faithful and paffionate a Servant of yours, as I am, could bear that Provocation, of finding his Mafter not only fo incenfed against him by his Enemies, but continued ftill in the Danger of being betrayed, by their Unfaithfulness, in the highest Interefts of his Eftate and Perfon. Reflecting upon this, I beseech you, Sir, what honest Man (loving you as I do) might not have been tranfported even to Frenzy and Madness ? As for my charging your Lord Chancellor in the House of Peers, I must confefs to have done it without Leave was a Failure, fince no Man ought to think that he is a better Judge of his Master's higheft Concernment, than himfelf. I do therefore, in all Humility, beg your Pardon, for any the leaft Appearance of fuch Prefumption. But that done, I moft humbly befeech you, to weigh in your princely Thoughts, from what other Motive it could poffibly proceed, but from my Zeal to your Service. From particular Spleen your Majefty cannot think it, fince you have so often vouchfafed me the Character of a very unvindictive Man; and know fo well, with what Patience I have borne all his malicious Practices against me, without falling upon him publicly, till I thought it could be no longer forborne, with

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out

out iminent Hazard to your Service and Safety: From Interest much lefs, fince it is evident that by forbearing to do it, I might have enjoyed Plenty and Quiet, with Marks of your Favour; and that by doing it, I hazarded and ruined my Fortune, then upon the Point of Settlement, and reduced myfelf, either to be a Prifoner, or a Vagabond. Nor do I think that any body will fay, that finding myfelf loft with you, I made my Court by it, to the next in Power.

Laftly, be pleased to vouchfafe me one Moment of Reflection back upon the whole Tenor of my Life in your Royal Father's Service, and in yours; and if in the intire Progrefs of it, your princely Heart can accufe me of the leaft Failure in true Zeal for the Intereft and Glory of your Crown, or in Affection for the Honour and Happinefs of your Perfon, 1 am fo far from defiring your Pardon, that I defire not to live; but if on the contrary, your excellent Judgment, as well as Nature, fhall bear me the Teftimony, within yourself, of a conftant Fervour and Faithfulness in them both, I hope that with so gracious,a Mafter, I fhall not be ruined, for one Tranfportment of Love beyond the Bounds of Difcretion. You know, as well as Solomon, that Love covers a Multitude of Faults: it is that which I cannot but promife myself, from your incomparable Goodness, whom I befeech God to bless and direct to what may be moft for the Honour and Profperity of your Affairs, though it were to be with the certain Deftruction of

Your Majesty's

humble Servant,

BRISTOL.

LET

LETTER LVIII.

Earl of Arlington to the Duke of Ormond, on the Death of Lord Offory.

MY laft gave your Grace fome Hopes of my Lord, your Son's Recovery, and the next Day after, thofe Hopes were ftrengthned by the concurrent Opinion of all Phyficians; but we at length were undeceived. On Friday, at a Quarter paft Seven in the Evening, it pleafed God to take him from us; to whofe Will we refign ourfelves, as I hope your Grace will do, on fo extraordinary an Occafion: fortify your Chriftianity with your Prudence, and Experience of the Vanity of this World; which we take more Pains than we ought to render pleafant and acceptable to us, and value ourselves upon Poffeffions, which in a Moment we may lofe. His Difeafe was fo ftrong in his Head (being a high malignant Fever) that he had but few Intervals free from the Delirium, that troubled him more or lefs all his Sicknefs, which Dr. Floyd, with much Care and Prudence, laid hold of, for the compofing his Mind, and to render him capable of receiving, and doing other Acts of a good Christian. In the Middle of his Sickness he spoke of making a Will, but finding him fo ill, I diverted him from it in the Prefence of fome of his Servants, by telling him the Circumstances in which he was, did not make it so neceffary for him, as for another Man: for, faid I, my Lord, I think you have nothing of that Nature to do, but to recommend your Wife and Children to your Father,

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ther, and to him likewife, the Payment of your Debts, and Gratification of your Servants; and this, if you please, I will do in your Name; which he feemed very well to accept of, and never more mentioned it; and I the rather humoured this Way with him, because in the Times he hath hitherto put himself into any extraordinary Actions at Sea or Land, he used to leave a fhort Paper with me, which contained the fame Things in Effect, and particularly befeeching your Grace to increase his Wife's Jointure, which I know not whether he was ever acquainted with; so I told him the aforementioned Points would be over-fecured by your Grace's Generosity.

I have caufed his Body to be laid in a Vault in Weftminster-Abbey, that it may be in a Condition of being buried hereafter here, or carried to Eufon, or to Kilkenny, as your Grace fhall think fit to direct.

What I have further ordered concerning his Affairs, you will find in a Memorandum I have put into Mr. M- -'s Hands, to receive your Orders thereupon. In the mean time I have prefumed to fend to the Bifhop, to let * my Lord James come hither, to fhew him to the World, whilft they are fo much in love with his Father's Memory, and lament to fuch an Excess, the Lofs of him, that it would look like Flattery, if I should tell your Grace half the Truth.

I cannot end this Letter, without adding, that I never faw a better Set of orderly, affectionate,

* Doctor Fell, Bishop of Oxford, and Dean of Chrift-Church; in which College, my Lord James, the prefent Duke of Ormond, received his Education.

and